A proposal to annex 18 acres into Peachtree City to enable a sewer connection for a shopping center in the unincorporated county was tabled by the planning commission Monday night.

Southern Pines Plantation wanted 3.86 acres to be rezoned for office use and the remaining 14.14 acres to be rezoned for open space so it could be donated to the city for a potential expansion of the Meade Field recreation complex. The tract is located south of Meade Field and on the western side of Ga. Highway 74; it would be accessed through the existing traffic light at Hwy. 74 and Redwine Road.

Planners had concerns about how much of the 14-plus acres would be usable for ballfields and the like, as part of the tract is wetlands and some of it is also underneath power transmission lines.

A representative for SPP said it is asking the county to reduce the total square footage for the site from 177,000 square feet to about 129,000 square feet. The development was approved in 2000 by the Fayette County Commission for a mix of retail and office space, and the company is courting a grocery store for the complex among other outparcels along the highway. So far nothing has been built on the property.

SPP attorney Carl Westmoreland said the company would build a pump station to extend a sewer line across Ga. Highway 74 to serve several properties that are inside the city limits. He also said the sewer extension to SPP’s site would not be within 200 feet of the property line to protect any other development from trying to get access to the sewer system.

Without the sewer system, SPP will have to go forward with its own septic system instead.

Planning Commissioner Larry Sussberg asked if SPP would dedicate the entire 18 acres to the city to use as a buffer to the shopping center. Westmoreland said he would bring that request to his client.

Planning Commissioner Patrick Staples said he wanted to see some architectural guidelines established for the area both inside and outside the city. Staples also said he wanted more information from recreation and sewer officials on the project.

login to post comments